Ashley, as in Madison, had a security breach, so the news said. Millions of not-so-fidelity-minded spouses may have their quiet affairs breached.

What a bummer, is nothing safe anymore?

Not only does the world have to cope with constant claptrap about runaway global warming or climate change, now even the bedroom climate is coming under suspicion; quite possibly, it could get hotter yet. But don’t fear, the Apostolic See is going to help you out. As the Ring of Fire Radio, LLC reports, “Mayors from around the world go to Vatican City to sign the Pope’s pledge on climate agreement.”

Moral Imperatives and Control

The statement emanating from that encounter says “...effective control is a moral imperative for humanity.” I quite agree. With the many millions of dollars the Vatican’s dioceses have had to cough up so far to settle numerous lawsuits about a variety of improprieties, what we really need is good teachings about moral imperatives. The only question is if the Vatican will provide the divine guidance so much needed. Just a couple of weeks ago, Pope Francis said on Thursday, “I say this to you with regret: Many grave sins were committed against the native peoples of America in the name of God” and “Like Saint John Paul II, I ask that the Church ‚Äòkneel before God and implore forgiveness for the past and present sins of her sons and daughters’ and “But where there was sin, and there was plenty of sin, ...”

But now, all things have changed—so we are led to believe. Moral sins of the past have been acknowledged and atoned, they are “water under the bridge,” what is the problem now is the environment, climate change, and its evil extraordinaire “carbon dioxide.” IMHO, the Pontifex needs to get some advice from his Pontifical Academy of Sciences.

The Pontifical Academy of Sciences

The Pontifical Academy of Sciences (PAS) is an illustrious body of world-renowned scientists. As successor-body to the “Accademia dei Lincei” of 1603 and the “Accademia Pontificia dei Nuovi Lincei” of 1847. Its current name and function was established in 1936 by Pope Pius XI.

Inter alia, the PAS’ goals include:

Promoting the progress of the mathematical, physical and natural sciences, and the study of related epistemological questions and issues.

For the PAS, just like for any other well-functioning organization, there is an underlying principle of trust. The big question of the day is if the PAS is living up to that principle.

The Principle of Trust

If you join any organization, as member you trust it to represent you in a fair and responsible way. If you want to trade or buy some goods, many people in the western world seal a deal with a simple handshake. In the Asian countries, the equivalent visual signal is a bow.

Whatever, the custom may be, once sealed by the signal of conveyance, both parties feel obliged to live up to its promises. Now, here comes a difficult (perhaps for some individuals) question: If you think that you simply are being honored for your past achievements by being recognized in a particular “hall of fame,” what are your responsibilities to that group? Is it okay to stand by idly and let the Pontifex proclaim ideas that you may disagree with?

Worse yet, if your nomination comes with an untouchable membership for life, what do you do? I think you have to ask yourself, who is the guardian of your trust in the organization? If I felt betrayed, I certainly would have some serious “soul searching” to do.

Consult—Your Soul

Pope Francis appears to have run rough-shod over the Pontifical Academy of Sciences. It appears that only three of the 75 or so PAS members were even being consulted with respect to the scientific aspects about carbon dioxide and climate change in the recent encyclical “Laudato Si”. Even the PAS’ President, Werner Arber, in an email of June 8, 2015, wrote “[translated from German]: Personally, I’m unsure as to what degree the climate change observed in recent decades can be ascribed to human causes, either directly or indirectly. Among the scientists the views diverge rather substantially. Up to now, I’ve had no occasion to speak with the Pope about that…” That statement came more than two weeks AFTER the official date (May 24) of the encyclical.

The encyclical’s emphasis on “carbon pollution” and “decarbonisation” as a means to foster the salvation of the world’s poor and destitute is no panacea. In fact, it misunderstands cause and consequence—big time!

The problem is not that people in industrialized countries have access to cheap and abundant fossil fuel-derived energy. The problem is that those in much of the world lack access to cheap and abundant energy!

The honourable members of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences may want to think about that.